Cleveland Cavaliers A-Z

By Roger Gordon and World B. Free

A must-have book for any Cavs fan, Cleveland Cavaliers A- Z is compiled alphabetically for easy accessibility. The book offers a complete history of the franchise and includes hundreds of different items of interest.

After the Cavaliers were founded as an expansion team in 1970, the team and its fans endured a league-worst 15-67 record in the inaugural season under head coach Bill Fitch. That gave the Cavs the first pick in the 1971 NBA Draft, which they used on Notre Dame’s Austin Carr, who joined a Cavaliers team that already had expansion draftee Bobby Bingo” Smith. An influx of talent that included Jim Cleamons, Jim Chones, and Dick Snyder eventually led to the team’s first-ever playoff appearance in 1975-76--including the Miracle of Richfield” against the Washington Bullets.

Since then Cavs fans have witnessed the first and second comings of LeBron James and two trips to the NBA Finals. Through savvy draft picks and trades, the Cavs are one of the most consistently successful franchises in the league.

Cleveland Cavaliers A- Z brings you the history of the Cavs and will delight those with a penchant for sports trivia with its array of facts and heightened attention to detail. From Gary Alexander to Tyler Zeller, this book has all the information Cavs fans would ever want to know about their team.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sports Publishing
• Release date: Apr 4, 2017
• ISBN: 9781683580010

Roger Gordon

Roger Gordon is a freelance writer who has authored four books, including Cleveland Browns: A to Z.

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Copyright © 2017 by Roger Gordon

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10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.

Cover design by Tom Lau

Cover photo credits: Left, The Cleveland Press Collection, Michael Schwartz Library, Cleveland State University; right, AP

ISBN: 978-1-61321-997-3

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-68358-001-0

Printed in the United States of America

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOREWORD

PREFACE

DECADE-BY-DECADE TIMELINE

A     RICHIE ADUBATO TO AVERAGE SEASON CROWDS, LARGEST TO SMALLEST

B     MILOS BABIC TO ANDREW BYNUM

C     MICHAEL CAGE TO SETH CURRY

D     CHUCK DALY TO TONY DUMAS

E     JERRY EAVES TO CHRISTIAN EYENGA

F     FAN CLUBS TO TERRY FURLOW

G     ROWLAND GARRETT TO MATT GUOKAS

H     HALL OF FAMERS TO GEOFF HUSTON

I      MARC IAVARONI TO KYRIE IRVING

J     J. WALTER KENNEDY CITIZENSHIP AWARD TO JUNE

K     JASON KAPONO TO HERMAN KULL

L     SAM LACEY TO TYRONN LUE

M     GERALD MADKINS TO BILL MUSSELMAN

N     LEE NAILON TO NUMBER ONE OVERALL DRAFT CHOICES

O     BOB OCIEPKA TO OWNERS (MAJORITY)

P     GERALD PADDIO TO JOE PRUNTY

Q     QUICKEN LOANS ARENA TO CHRIS QUINN

R     LUTHER RACKLEY TO CAMPY RUSSELL

S     SAMARDO SAMUELS TO WALLY SZCZERBIAK

T     JOE TAIT TO 2016 CHAMPIONSHIP PARADE AND RALLY

U     UNIFORMS/LOGOS TO BEN UZOH

V     DARNELL VALENTINE TO GARY VOCE

W     DAJUAN WAGNER TO WWWE-AM 1100

X     X-RAYS

Y     YULETIDE CHEER (CAVS ON CHRISTMAS)

Z     TYLER ZELLER

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

TEAM STATISTICS

ATTENDANCE STATISTICS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

FOREWORD

World B. Free

Iam not going to lie. I was less than thrilled when I got traded to the Cavaliers from Golden State in mid-December 1982. When I got the news, I was in shock. I was coming from a team that was struggling somewhat to a team that only wished it was in the Warriors’ shoes. The Cavs had finished just 15-67 the season before. By the time I played my first game in the wine and gold, the team had won just three of 23 games in 1982–83.

Upon arriving in Cleveland, I began hearing all the horror stories about the owner, Ted Stepien. Stepien was pretty much running the franchise into the ground by way of wacky trades and other goofy moves, with players coming and going all the time, and had his eyes set on Toronto becoming the team’s new home. It was a chaotic situation, to say the least. And the fans had long since become fed up with Stepien. We were playing before minuscule crowds at The Coliseum. It was a nightmare.

I knew firsthand that Cleveland was a good basketball town. I remembered, from my early years with Philadelphia, fans flocking to The Coliseum to watch very talented Cavs teams. They had guys like Austin Carr, Dick Snyder, Bingo Smith, Campy Russell, Jim Cleamons, and Jim Chones.

Times had changed, though. Boy, had they ever. When I first got to Cleveland, during a game you could dribble the basketball and hear the echo across the entire arena! Dribbling one basketball sounded like 10 basketballs dribbling at one time! When the coach would yell a play, all of the fans knew what the play was because there were about 12 people there!

However, even though I was in a lousy situation, I tried, like I always do in any aspect of my life, to turn a negative into a positive. I remember telling a reporter, Before I leave here, this place is gonna sell out. This is the beginning of a new beginning.

The Cavaliers played much better the rest of that 1982-83 season than they had before I got there, finishing with 23 wins. With Stepien thankfully gone and under new—and much more stable—owners Gordon and George Gund, our win total jumped to 28 in 1983-84. Under new head coach George Karl, who replaced Tom Nissalke, we got off to an atrocious start, however, in 1984-85, losing 19 of our first 21 games.

I had played against George in the pros and knew he was a hard-nosed guy. It was his way or the door. We butted heads a couple of times during that terrible start. He wanted me to take fewer shots and be more of a distributor of the ball. I knew, though, that I could still roll and do what I did best, and that was shoot the ball. His way obviously wasn’t working, and he realized it was killing my game, too. George and I had a meeting in his office that was very productive. We realized we needed each other to turn this thing around, and we finally found a happy medium and got on the same page. He allowed me to take my shots again, but I began involving my teammates more. I even became a decoy at times. I saw that the other players were growing, and I began to have more confidence that they’d hit their shots when I’d pass the ball to them.

We started playing much better ball. With veterans like Phil Hubbard and Johnny Davis and youngsters such as Roy Hinson, John Bagley, and Paul Thompson contributing big time, we began to come together and grow as a team. Fueled by a pair of six-game winning streaks, incredibly we put ourselves in position to earn the franchise’s first postseason berth in seven years. And, on April 9, we did just that with a 114–100 victory over New Jersey in front of more than 10,000 raucous fans at The Coliseum. That attendance figure might not sound all that impressive to younger fans, but considering that we regularly played before home crowds in the 3,000–4,000 range when I first got to Cleveland, it was reason to celebrate. We finished with a 36-46 record that was good enough for the eighth and final seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Our first-round opponent was top-seeded Boston, the defending NBA champion, a team that finished a league-best 63-19 and was led by future Hall of Famers Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish. No one gave us a chance, but I felt we could beat the Celtics, I really did, especially after the first game up in Boston when we lost by only three points. We wound up losing the series three games to one, but, man, did we ever throw a scare into those boys from Beantown. We gave them everything we had and more. Every game was close. It just didn’t go our way at the end of the three games we lost.

What made that Boston series even more special to me was the fact that, in the last two games at The Coliseum, we played before sellout crowds of nearly 21,000, bringing to reality exactly what I had told that reporter some two years earlier. It was beautiful. It was like my championship! To put it in perspective, what we accomplished in Cleveland in that 1984-85 season was an even bigger thrill for me, believe it or not, than when I was a member of the Philadelphia team eight years earlier that advanced all the way to the NBA Finals. True, I was a key cog for that Philly club, but that squad had guys like Dr. J., George McGinnis, and Doug Collins. The Cleveland situation was more of a challenge for me. I was in my early-30s and on my last legs. After all the work I had put into basketball, building that place back up was my greatest achievement. It was something that was really needed because, although many people consider Cleveland to be a Browns town first and an Indians town second, basketball is very, very important to that city.

I was awfully proud of the LeBron James–led Cavaliers who in 2016 brought a championship to a title-starved town that deserved one like no other. There is one other thing I would like to see while I am still alive—and that is to have 21, my jersey number with the Cavs, hanging in the rafters of The Q. Even if it never happens, though, I will always have fond memories of my four years in Cleveland.

Especially that remarkable playoff run 32 years ago that brought excitement back to Cavaliers basketball after some very dark days.

PREFACE

My number one Cavs memory is when LeBron James and company defeated the Golden State Warriors in Game 7 of the NBA Finals on June 19, 2016, giving the city of Cleveland its first major professional sports championship in more than half a century. The spectacular parade and rally downtown three days later brought chills up my spine. Odds are, though, that my second-favorite Cavaliers memory will shock you. I’d put money on it.

The Miracle of Richfield? I barely missed out on all the fun, as I began following the Cavs the very next season. The near upset of Larry Bird and Boston in the 1985 playoffs? Nope. The next season’s NBA Draft day that brought to town Brad Daugherty, Ron Harper, and Mark Price? Uh-uh. The Game 7 blowout of the Celtics in Bird’s farewell six years later that I witnessed in person? Not. The 2003 Draft Lottery that brought to town the one and only LeBron James? His buzzer beater against the Magic six years later? Try again.

My second-most cherished Cavaliers memory came when I was 12, soon to be 13, years old, long before LeBron was even a passing thought in his mother’s mind. It was a game against Bird, just a rookie then, and Boston on the night of March 22, 1980, toward the end of a season in which Cleveland finished just 37-45. The game wasn’t even on TV locally, since it was back in the days when most went untelevised. I listened to Joe Tait’s radio call of the Cavs’ 109–105 victory—win number eight in a row—that inched them closer to a coveted playoff berth, which seemed impossible two weeks beforehand. The contest was played at a rocking Coliseum before nearly 20,000 fans. I believe, at that time, it was the most exciting Cavaliers home game since the Miracle of Richfield, even more so than the thrilling, four-overtime shocker over Magic Johnson and the Lakers some two months earlier.

The great thing about being a sports fan is that, just like in all aspects of life, everyone has an opinion. Debating who the best player is, what the best team is, who the best coach is … that’s what it’s all about.

The Cavaliers have definitely had their ups and downs throughout their 46 seasons, from their 15-win expansion year all the way to their 2015-16 championship season. Cleveland Cavaliers A–Z offers fans a chance to relive their favorite memories from Cavs history, plus many more, in a unique format—more than 550 items of interest, including every single player who ever suited up for the Cavs, within 26 chapters for each letter of the alphabet, plus individual, team, and attendance statistics.

It is quite possible that I am the only Cavs fan out there who has such a strong recollection of that 1980 game against the Celtics. But that’s okay.

After all, to each his own.

DECADE-BY-DECADE TIMELINE

1970-71 to 1979-80

It was an inauspicious start for the Cavaliers in their inaugural season of 1970-71. Under owner Nick Mileti and head coach Bill Fitch, they lost their first 15 games, including a 141–87 thrashing by Philadelphia. Win number one came by a 105–103 score at fellow expansion team Portland. The Cavs then lost 12 more in a row to fall to an appalling 1-27. Their first win at home, the decrepit Cleveland Arena, was by a 108–106 score over their other fellow expansion club, Buffalo. The Cavs dropped to 3-37 before winning two straight games for the first time, both at home—120–107 over the Braves the day after Christmas and 114–101 over the 76ers two days later. The Cavaliers, who were led by Walt Wesley and John Johnson, finished 15-67 and in the far reaches of the Central Division basement.

The Cavs slowly and steadily progressed, for the most part, in the coming years. They improved to 23-59 in 1971-72 and 32-50 in 1972-73 but dropped to 29-53 in 1973-74, their final season at the Cleveland Arena. By the time The Coliseum, a brand new basketball palace in nearby Richfield, became their home in 1974-75, the Cavaliers’ roster had some talented players on it like Jim Cleamons, Dick Snyder, Foots Walker, Austin Carr, Bingo Smith, Jim Brewer, Campy Russell, and Jim Chones.

Cleveland opened the 1974-75 season with six road games, going 3-3, including a win at defending NBA champion Boston. Unfortunately, the Cavaliers christened The Coliseum by losing badly to the same Celtics. Then they won three games in a row and went on to enjoy a solid first three months of the season, winning 22 of 40 games. They dropped eight straight to fall four games below the .500 mark before winning 10 of 13 to improve to 32-29. The playoffs were a distinct possibility. A seven-game losing streak ensued, however, before the Cavs won seven of 10 to get to 39-39 with four games left. They lost at Houston and Atlanta, then returned home for a crucial contest against New York, another team in the running for an Eastern Conference playoff berth—the biggest game in franchise history to that point. Before a then NBA-record crowd of 20,239, the Cavaliers prevailed 100–95. They needed to win their finale against the Kings three days later on a Sunday afternoon in Omaha, Nebraska, to qualify for the playoffs and close the regular season with a 41-41 record. Unfortunately, they lost 95–94 when Fred Foster’s shot from the top of the key was blocked as time expired. It was a disappointing end to a season filled with hope.

In a key matchup for both teams, the largest crowd ever to watch an NBA game to date—20,239—cheers the Cavs to a 100–95 victory over the Knicks, April 3, 1975. (The Cleveland Press Collection, Michael Schwartz Library, Cleveland State University)

With basically the same cast of characters, the Cavaliers got off to a slow start in 1975-76, losing 10 of their first 16 games. Then, on Thanksgiving Day, they acquired Akron native—and living legend—Nate Thurmond, by way of a trade with Chicago. The Cavs lost four of six games following the trade, but with Thurmond backing up Chones—giving the team a needed defensive presence underneath—they reeled off seven straight wins to improve to 15-14. When they lost to Detroit in overtime on January 7, that dropped them to 18-18, but it would be the last time they would sit at the .500 mark that season. It would be a battle between the Cavaliers and Washington for the Central Division title the rest of the way. With seven players averaging double figures in points per game, led by Chones’s 15.8, the Cavs dethroned the five-time defending division champs by a single game, 49-33 to 48-34.

After receiving a first-round bye, the Cavaliers opposed the Bullets in what would turn out to be a memorable seven-game conference semifinal series, with the Cavs coming out on top. Three of their victories came in miraculous fashion—two at The Coliseum—in what would soon become known as the Miracle of Richfield. Chones broke his right foot in a practice session two days before the start of the conference title series with Boston, ending his season. With Thurmond manning the starting center spot, the Cavaliers took the eventual NBA champions to six tough games before falling, prompting many to opine that the Cavs, not the Celtics, would have won the whole shebang had Chones been in there.

With a healthy Chones back, the Cavaliers raced out of the gates scorching hot in 1976-77, winning their first eight games. They were 16-4—their second-best record ever after 20 games—following a 98–91 overtime win at Kansas City on December 1. They leveled off somewhat and were 27-22 when Thurmond suffered a left knee injury that, for all intents and purposes, ended his career. With Elmore Smith, who had arrived by way of a trade with the Bucks three-and-a-half weeks earlier, helping out underneath, the Cavs finished 43-39, good enough for the sixth and final seed in the Eastern Conference playoff field. In a series not nearly as riveting as the one with Washington the year before, they lost to the Bullets two games to one in the opening round.

The Cavaliers started strong again in 1977–78 but dropped off and struggled to stay above the .500 mark for the majority of the season. A hot finish—nine wins in their last 10 games—resulted in another 43-39 finish and pushed them into the playoffs as the fourth seed. They were quickly vanquished in the opening round, however, by the Knicks two games to none, getting blown out at home 132–114 in Game 1 and falling 109–107 in Game 2 at Madison Square Garden on Spencer Haywood’s jumper from the top of the key with two seconds remaining.

The Cavs began the 1978-79 season 4-0 but then lost 14 of their next 15 games. They heated up a little and, after a 112–108 win over the Warriors on January 7, their record stood at 17-22. That was the closest they would come to .500 for the rest of the season. They wound up 30-52 and in fifth place in the Central Division. Fitch resigned after the season.

With Stan Albeck as the new head coach, newcomers Randy Smith, Dave Robisch, and Kenny Carr on the roster, and 1978 first-round draft pick Mike Mitchell coming into his own, leading the team in scoring, the 1979-80 Cavaliers had by far the most potent offense in franchise history. Unfortunately, the team’s defense was just about as bad as its offense was good. The Cavs started poorly but improved to 19-20 by the New Year. An atrocious January and February dropped them to 27-43 in early March. An eight-game winning streak—capped off by an electrifying 109–105 triumph over Boston in a nearly sold-out Coliseum—got them within striking distance of a playoff berth. They fell just short, most likely due to a season-ending injury to Russell halfway through the schedule, splitting their final four games to finish 37-45.

1980-81 to 1989-90

With new owner Ted Stepien doing his best to ruin the franchise in every way imaginable and hothead Bill Musselman as the new head coach, the 1980-81 Cavaliers began the season 12-27 before improving enough to get to 22-32 at the All-Star break. Unfortunately they came out of the break ice cold, dropping five straight games en route to a 28-54 record. New general manager Don Delaney replaced Musselman for the final 11 games.

With Stepien (where was Delaney?) making bad, and bizarre, trades and under four head coaches—Delaney, Bob Kloppenburg, Chuck Daly, and Musselman again—the 1981–82 Cavaliers lost their final 19 games and finished 15-67. By this time, Stepien was known locally as Terrible Ted, and his team was referred to by many as the Cadavers.

With Tom Nissalke the new head coach in 1982-83, the soap opera continued as the Cavs lost their first five games for an NBA record at the time of 24 straight defeats dating back to the previous season. A month-and-a-half into the schedule, a trade that actually benefited the team brought sharpshooter World B. Free to Cleveland from Golden State. Free’s long bombs were about all that Cavs fans had to cheer in a 23-59 season.

With empty seats behind them, Ted Stepien (left) and Bill Musselman prior to a home game with Chicago, April 7, 1982. (The Cleveland Press Collection, Michael Schwartz Library, Cleveland State University)

Just as he was about to finalize a deal that would land the Cavaliers in Toronto, Stepien sold the team to a local group headed by brothers Gordon and George Gund. The Cavs improved in 1983-84 but still finished just 28-54. With George Karl as the new head coach, they began the next season 2-19. However, led by Free and a surprisingly effective supporting cast, including Roy Hinson, Phil Hubbard, and John Bagley, they recovered remarkably, enough for a 36-46 record and the final seed in the conference playoffs, the team’s first postseason berth in seven years. Karl’s squad put up a gallant effort against Larry Bird and heavy favorite Boston in the first round, losing three games to one in an extremely competitive series.

Cleveland won just 29 games under Karl and Gene Littles in 1985-86. With former Cavalier Lenny Wilkens as the new head coach and Brad Daugherty, Ron Harper, and Mark Price on the roster by way of a remarkable NBA Draft day the previous summer, plus John Hot Rod Williams in the fold, the future looked bright despite a 31-51 record.

With Larry Nance’s high-wire act in town in 1987-88 due to a late-season trade with Phoenix, the Cavaliers posted their first winning record, 42-40, in a decade and qualified for the playoffs. In what would turn out to be virtually a yearly ritual, they were ousted by Michael Jordan and the Bulls in the first round three games to two. The next year was even more heartbreaking. After waltzing to a franchise-best at the time 57-25 record, the Cavs again lost to the Bulls, a team they had swept all six games from during the regular season, in the first round of the playoffs. This time it was Jordan’s buzzer beater—The Shot—on May 7 at The Coliseum that eliminated the Cavs, again in a deciding fifth game. With the flashy, and extremely athletic, Harper traded to the Clippers seven games into the 1989-90 season—a controversial move to say the least among Cavs fans—the team finished just 42-40 and again failed to advance past the opening round of the playoffs, losing three games to two yet again, this time to Philadelphia.

1990-91 to 1999-2000

The 1990-91 Cavaliers were ravaged by injuries. They were 8-7 when Price tore his left ACL, ending his season. They were 14-28 when Williams severely sprained his foot, ending his season. The Cavs wound up 33-49. The 1991-92 Cavaliers lost four of their first five games before winning 12 of their next 16 to improve to 13-8. After a loss at New Jersey, they put the pedal to the metal by reeling off 11 straight wins to improve to 24-9. They finished with a 57-25 record but still 10 games behind Jordan and the Central Division champion Bulls. They ousted New Jersey three games to one in the opening round of the playoffs and then in the conference semifinals eliminated Boston in seven games, dominating the Celtics 122–104 in the deciding game before a sellout crowd of 20,273 at The Coliseum. In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Cavs lost to the Bulls in six games.

John Hot Rod Williams drives past Larry Bird during the 1992 Eastern Conference Semifinals. (AndersonsClevelandDesign.com)

The next season, the Cavaliers again started slowly, dropping five of their first eight games. They were 8-11 when they ripped off seven straight wins and 10 of 11. They were 43-27 on April 4 when they went on a 10-game winning skein en route to a 54-28 finish. They beat the Nets again in the opening round of the playoffs, but this time it took five games to do it. In the second round, they were swept in four games by the Bulls, losing the finale 103–101 in heartbreaking fashion at The Coliseum on The Shot II—another jumper by Jordan at the buzzer.

With Mike Fratello as the Cavaliers’ new head coach in 1993-94, the team started slowly yet again and was just 7-14 a week before Christmas. A five-game winning streak culminating in overtime wins against Indiana and Charlotte, respectively, was exactly what the doctor ordered. Three straight defeats ensued, but that was just an aberration. The Cavs proceeded to win 13 of their next 19 games. A 102–95 home loss to the Knicks on February 17 left them with a 25-24 record. An 11-game winning streak upped their record to 36-24 as they primed themselves for the postseason. They wound up 47-35. Unfortunately, their first-round playoff opponent was—you guessed it—the Bulls. Even minus M.J., who at the time was retired, the Cavaliers could not get over the Windy City hump, getting swept in three games, the fifth time in seven years that their season came to a close with a loss to Chicago. It was only fitting, too, that the clincher—the Cavs’ final game ever at The Coliseum—came in heartbreaking fashion yet again, 95–92 in overtime.

By the time the 1994-95 season arrived, the Cavaliers had a new home